DMD Starting Salary in semi-rural area (FL)

[DrG8tor]

Dear SDNers,

I have an established general dentist friend who is looking to hire a dental school graduate for his private practice. He lives in a semi-rural area in Florida, and would like to offer a fair (not too low/high) salary to this graduate but is not sure what is appropriate for a fresh DMD graduate nowadays.

Do any of you have an idea how much would be appropriate?
Thanks for your answers

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Daurang]

$325k annual

 

[THS]

$500-$600 per day or 30% of production (whichever is higher) with lab fees paid. Or 33% of production and the associate has to pay his own lab fees. I don't like restrictive covenants, but your friend may consider not letting his associate practice within a few miles for a few years after he leaves your friend's office.

Have him start the associate off part time to make sure he has enough patients to support the associate. If not, the associate may be sitting around twiddling his thumbs for $500 a day because your friend underestimated the amount of new patients he will see.

Somehow I think this is a thinly veiled "how much do dentists make out of school" question, and OP doesn't want to get trolled by the SDNers that see that question posted every other day.

 

[DrG8tor]

$500-$600 per day or 30% of production (whichever is higher) with lab fees paid. Or 33% of production and the associate has to pay his own lab fees. I don't like restrictive covenants, but your friend may consider not letting his associate practice within a few miles for a few years after he leaves your friend's office.

Have him start the associate off part time to make sure he has enough patients to support the associate. If not, the associate may be sitting around twiddling his thumbs for $500 a day because your friend underestimated the amount of new patients he will see.

Somehow I think this is a thinly veiled "how much do dentists make out of school" question, and OP doesn't want to get trolled by the SDNers that see that question posted every other day.

Thanks for you answer! I know that $500 per day is a typical starting salary - it's just that in a semi-rural area in FL the cost of living is low, which is why I thought the salary would have to be adjusted accordingly (and the "adjustment" is what I am trying to find out!).

 

[THS]

Thanks for you answer! I know that $500 per day is a typical starting salary - it's just that in a semi-rural area in FL the cost of living is low, which is why I thought the salary would have to be adjusted accordingly (and the "adjustment" is what I am trying to find out!).

If anything, semi-rural docs may make more than urban docs. There isn't enough information to go off here though (doc/pt ratio, demographics, new pts/month, etc).

 

[jeffk805dent]

If anything, semi-rural docs may make more than urban docs. There isn't enough information to go off here though (doc/pt ratio, demographics, new pts/month, etc).

this is true. Too few patients/too few rich patients and you just wont make enough, plus you have to consider not everyone will consider visiting the dentist no matter how hard you mention the importance of oral hygiene.

 

[DrJeff]

There are 2 ways to look at what a "fair" contract/wage is

#1 - a situation where you get paid a set amount, regardless of how much you do/don't produce and more importantly the office COLLECTS off of what you produce - this way you know that you have a certain sized pay check every pay period, even if patients don't show up on you or the office can't collect on what you billed out. If you have production above and beyond what your overhead to the practice is, then it benefits the practice owner, if your production is less than your overhead, then in benefits you. What you overhead is will ultimately be affected by what is/isn't being paid by the practice on your behalf (i.e. license fees, lab fees, medical insurance, CE fees, professional society fees, etc, etc, etc)

#2 - you get paid a straight percentage of your (likely) collections - some offices may do production, but most will do collections - the more you produce and collect, the more you make and vice versa - what other items effecting your overhead (as mentioned in #1) is negotiable - if you were hired as a true "independent contractor" then you'd be responsible for all your extra expenses, including paying your own taxes on your earnings, If you were hired as an employee of the practice, then some of those extra expenses, including taxes, would be paid by the practice

In my 1st associate contract, I had a hybrid version, where I was paid a set amount per pay period, regardless of what my collections were, and then anything collected above a set amount, I received 35% of. All of my "extras" effecting my overhead as mentioned in #1 were covered by my employer

 

[bc1002]

Thanks for you answer! I know that $500 per day is a typical starting salary - it's just that in a semi-rural area in FL the cost of living is low, which is why I thought the salary would have to be adjusted accordingly (and the "adjustment" is what I am trying to find out!).

The practice is in semi-rural area does not mean the graduate chooses to live in the same place. I live in a small town in florida and all the dentists I know here commute everyday.

 

[Cold Front]

I had $200-250k a year offer as a fairly new dentist. This was the gulf side of Florida, snow birds country.

 

[agentghost]

The practice is in semi-rural area does not mean the graduate chooses to live in the same place. I live in a small town in florida and all the dentists I know here commute everyday.

one dentist I know was willing to commute 1 hour (1 way) to her rural workplace. These things added up and in the end, her health gave out. 1 hour commute on a bus is one thing but driving is stressful, especially AFTER a full work day

 

[Daurang]

one dentist I know was willing to commute 1 hour (1 way) to her rural workplace. These things added up and in the end, her health gave out. 1 hour commute on a bus is one thing but driving is stressful, especially AFTER a full work day

Something's wrong with your dentist. One hour one way driving is typical daily driving to work for most people.

 

[allantois]

What areas in Florida are rural???

 

[amariesa]

650$ a day or 35%, whichever is higher.

 

[wengerout]

What areas in Florida are rural???

Northern FL, think the areas between the major cities (Jax, Tallahassee, Gainesville etc. )

 

[Alpha Centauri]

What areas in Florida are rural???

Anything not boxed in

 

[allantois]

Anything not boxed in

Meh, no one really lives in the Everglades. SW Florida is not rural. People in central FL live within 1 hour of Orlando. Maybe there are some pockets of rural in the North, but it’s still not my idea of rural.